Unseen Hazards
by badly-knitted
Summary: Working late causes Drake a few problems as he tries to find his way to bed. Written for fic promptly. Set after Like Like Love.


**Title:** Unseen Hazards

**Author:** badly-knitted

**Characters:** Drake, JJ.

**Rating:** PG

**Setting: **After Like Like Love.

**Summary:** Working late causes Drake a few problems as he tries to find his way to bed.

**Word Count:** 1718

**Written For:** My own prompt 'FAKE, Drake/JJ, Drake is a klutz,' at fic_promptly.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

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"This is silly," JJ had said barely two weeks earlier.

"What is?" Drake had asked, confused because he hadn't thought there was anything silly about their relationship. He'd been really happy since he and JJ had gotten together, and until that moment he'd thought JJ was too.

"All this going back and forth between apartments. You live so far away from me; think of all the time we're wasting travelling between your place and mine when we could be together."

JJ had a point of course; Drake didn't own a car, so he had to get everywhere by subway or bus, which meant he often had nearly an hour's commute to get from his apartment to JJ's in the evenings. Still… "Not much we can do about it though, is there? I can't afford to rent someplace closer. I don't have that kind of money."

"So why don't you move in with me?"

Drake had blinked at his partner. "Move in with you?" he'd repeated, wondering if he'd misheard.

JJ nodded. "It's the perfect solution!"

It would be, there were all kinds of advantages to living together, but… "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, silly! I wouldn't have asked otherwise. What do you say?" JJ looked hopeful but slightly nervous, as if half expecting Drake to say 'no', which was never going to happen.

"I say yes, of course I will! Nothing would make me happier!"

"Yay!" JJ had jumped on Drake then, kissing him until they were both completely out of breath, leaving Drake in a happy daze and wondering if he was dreaming.

So last weekend, when they'd both had a couple of days off, they'd packed up Drake's personal possessions, had the Goodwill store pick up most of the furniture, which Drake had brought second-hand in the first place, and almost before he knew it, he was living with his lover.

It was brilliant! Sharing JJ's bed every night, having breakfast together every morning, making dinner together in the evenings… Plus, Drake got to enjoy JJ's big bathtub and top-of-the-line shower whenever he wanted. He'd never felt so squeaky clean in his life, which was a miracle considering how messy sleeping together made them, in the best possible way, of course. Five days of living and working together had Drake practically walking on air, but then he'd found himself conscripted to work second shift while JJ was on first, and then he got held up at work because one of the downsides of being a cop was that it wasn't always possible to clock off when your shift was supposed to end… You could hardly abandon chasing a suspect just because you'd reached the official end to your working day.

Drake had called JJ to tell him he'd be late, and not to wait up for him. JJ would have to get up at six thirty in the morning in order to get to the precinct by eight, and the rate things were going, it would be well past midnight before Drake made it home…

Just after one thirty in the morning, Drake stepped out of the cab outside the building where he now lived, and paid his fare, even tipping the driver. JJ owned his apartment outright, only needing to pay the utilities, and although Drake had insisted that he pay his share of any bills, it still worked out a lot less than he'd been paying in rent and utilities at his old place, which meant he was able to travel by taxi now and then without having to worry about the expense. It took him far less time to get home that way than it would if he had to rely on public transport, not to mention it meant he got dropped off practically at the door instead of having to walk several blocks from the nearest subway station or bus stop.

Taking the elevator to the top floor foyer, Drake used his new key to let himself in to what he still thought of as JJ's apartment. The place was in complete darkness, except for what little light filtered in through the curtains covering the wide French doors that led out onto the balcony. Toeing off his shoes, Drake fumbled the closet door open and put them on the shoe rack just inside, dropping one on the floor in the process. Going down on hands and knees, he felt around in the dark until he found it and put it more or less where it belonged, then stood up and slipped out of his coat, hanging it on a hanger mostly by touch. Stepping back, he swung the door shut, but because h couldn't see what he was doing, one of his feet got in the way, the bottom of the door scraping right over the tops of his tender toes…

Gritting his teeth in an attempt to keep quiet, Drake hopped about on one foot, clutching at the injured one with one hand, tears of agony springing to his eyes. Damn! That really hurt! His free hand flailed at the wall for support, but this was JJ's apartment, not his own, and the wall wasn't where he thought it should be. Losing his balance, he fell to the living room floor with a muffled thump and a grunt of pain, fortunately landing on one of the thick rugs scattered about the polished floorboards. He stayed there cradling his abused foot until it stopped throbbing, then carefully stood up and tried to get his bearings.

Drake had known his old apartment like the back of his hand, having lived there for six or seven years, but it was barely a quarter the size of JJ's and memorising the number of steps between walls, furniture, and doors for those occasions when he arrived home a bit drunk had been simple. Despite being in a relationship with JJ for almost a year, and his work partner and friend for several years before that, JJ's apartment was still unfamiliar terrain to Drake. His eyes were adjusting to the darkness though, and he could dimly make out where the windows were…

He turned in the direction of JJ's bedroom door, took three limping steps, and tripped over the footstool, landing face-first on the sofa. Floundering his way off the soft cushions, he dragged himself to his feet again; maybe he should have turned the lights on, but then he would have had to go back and turn them off again before going to bed; he could hardly leave them on all night. What he really needed was a flashlight. JJ probably had one, but Drake didn't know where he kept it, and anyway, finding it would probably take more time and effort than it would save. Cautiously feeling his way around the end of the sofa, and the small table that sat beside it, almost knocking the table lamp onto the floor in the process, Drake made for the nearest wall, keeping his arms out in front of him so he wouldn't walk into anything and hurt himself again. He turned left as soon as he reached it; all he had to do now was follow it to the bedroom door.

Naturally, he forgotten about the carved wooden chest that stood against the wall, and he barked his shin on it, biting back a yelp at the sudden pain. Still, at least he knew he was going in the right direction. Just a few more steps…

"Hold it right there and raise your hands; I'm a cop!"

The flashlight beam shining directly into his face would have been enough to stop Drake in his tracks, even without the crisp command. He closed his eyes and flinched away from the dazzling brightness that had his eyes stinging and watering, but he still raised his hands as ordered. "It's me, JJ."

"Drake? What are you doing sneaking around? I thought you were a burglar!"

Drake clearly heard the click of a gun safety being engaged and although he still had his eyes closed, he could tell that the flashlight was now directed away from his face.

"Sorry, JJ, it's just really dark in here and I kept bumping into things."

"Why didn't you turn the lights on?"

"It's late and I figured you'd be asleep; I didn't want to wake you." It sounded lame even as Drake said it, even if it was mostly the truth.

JJ huffed a short laugh. "Oh, Drakey! Your technique could use some work; you were making enough noise to wake the dead!"

"Yeah, well it wasn't intentional. I shut the coat closet door on my foot, and then I fell over a couple of times, and walked into…" he gestured at the heavy wooden trunk, "your box thing. I wouldn't make a very good burglar; not exactly stealthy."

"No you're not." Giggling, JJ tucked his gun in the waistband of his pyjama pants, put his arms around Drake, and kissed him. "You, Drake Parker, are a bona fide klutz, but I love you anyway. Come on, I think I'd better put you to bed and kiss your bruises better before you manage to do some permanent damage to yourself."

"Mm, I think you're right. I'm really sorry for waking you up though."

"Don't be; it's fine. I'd far rather it was you than a burglar. But in future I should probably leave a flashlight on the table just inside the door, so you can get to the bedroom in one piece, without tripping over every piece of furniture in the apartment in the process."

"That sounds like a very good idea." Drake smiled a bit sheepishly at his boyfriend. "I might have destroyed half your furniture trying to be clever; I nearly broke your lamp."

"Furniture doesn't matter; things like that can be replaced. I'm more concerned about your safety."

"I'm okay, just sore toes and a few bruises."

"Let's get you to bed and I'll patch you up."

Taking Drake by the hand, JJ led him towards the bedroom, the beam of his flashlight helpfully picking out potential hazards so Drake could avoid them. There was no doubt about it; being able to see where he was going was a whole lot safer than blundering around in the dark.

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The End


End file.
